iZombie has ended up its fifth and final season, marking the end for this tale of brain-eating, crime-fighting, and zombie conspiracies. The show neatly wrapped up Liv’s story, bringing the zombie outbreak of Seattle to a close, and doling out both surprise deaths (albeit well-deserved ones) and happy endings for fan-favorite characters.
While iZombie ended well, that doesn’t mean that fans weren’t hoping to see Liv Moore (Rose McIver) and her crew carry on just a little while longer, because there were still plenty of storylines left to explore. The CW show, which is based on the comic series of the same name by Chris Roberson and Michael Allred, began with the intriguing premise of a zombie coroner who uses her undead abilities to solve crimes, and built a fascinating world of zombie-human relations on top of that.
iZombie may have taught us that death isn’t the end… but iZombie season 5 really was the end. Here’s why Liv and co. won’t be coming back (bar any surprise resurrections).
iZombie Season 6 Isn’t Happening
It may be a fan dream, but sadly, there will not be a sixth season of the series. iZombie was officially cancelled back in May 2018, along with some of the CW’s other longer-running series. Although iZombie was definitely a cult hit, was nominated for multiple Teen Choice awards (among others) and was well-received by the critics, it simply never picked up the kind of ratings and mainstream popularity that shows like Arrow and The Flash did. Although iZombie is another comic-book based CW series, it’s definitely not a superhero show, and that might have something to do with it.
Thankfully, though, the CW did allow the show to wrap things up nicely, as showrunner Rob Thomas explained, “It is in a lovely bow at the end of the season. We will answer all of the big, long-term arc questions.” And in many ways, the lack of a sixth season isn’t a bad thing; from its beginnings as more of a crime-solving show (where the undead Liv eats a victim’s brains to discover clues about their murder), iZombie evolved into a story about a massive outbreak, a walled Seattle, and warring factions fighting for survival inside. Had the show continued, there was definitely a risk that it might have jumped the undead shark. Instead, fans got an ending that wrapped things up at just the right moment. That said, had the CW decided to continue with this quirky project, there are still a few things that could have happened.
What iZombie Season 6 Could Have Been About
The iZombie season finale saw the battle for Seattle come to a head. Finally, there is a way to make a cure for the zombie virus, and after an impressive heist and some devious trickery, Liv & co. have all they need to make it - and to prove to the people that it’s possible. The episode ends with a flash-forward, showing Ravi (now head of the CDC), Peyton (now a DA), and Clive (co-captain of the SFPD with Dale) on a talk show, discussing the final days of the outbreak. It’s clear that the virus has been dealt with, and the world thinks that Liv (a.k.a. Renegade) died in the final battle. However, there’s a twist - Liv isn’t dead (at least, no more than usual). She and Major have come through with the original dream of zombie island - somewhere that those who didn’t want to be cured (because it would kill them, in many cases) could go and live happily ever after.
A sixth season would have been a great way to explore this; not just the post-zombie lives of the main characters (it’s not really necessary to see most of that), but how zombie island came to be, and how Liv and Major managed to get everyone to it that wanted to go. How does a utopian zombie society function? Where are they getting their brains? Are more coming in, via a secret underground, undead zombie railroad? In addition, there were a few loose ends that could have been tied up in a final season that explored the ten year gap in a bit more detail. What happened to the massive corporation that was Filmore Graves? Did Blaine ever manage to get out of that well and back to causing trouble? Really, even a few scenes from inside the well would have the potential to be incredible.
Overall, though, the decision to end the series when it did was a positive one - and while fans can enjoy debating the plot of more zombie stories, unless there’s news of a Zombie Island spin off in the works, viewers will have to be satisfied with the way that the CW put a bullet in iZombie’s brain.
